The latest information bulletin INFO-18 from our partners at swissfaculty is now online. It features an article written by former actionuni co-president Salome Adam on why we need structural improvements for mid-level staff employed at Swiss universities.
Please find actionuni’s annual report.
The new law suggests that the Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education is being recognized and accredited as a University of Teacher Education. Our main feedback points were: The new law shall include a paragraph on securing the autonomy of the institution. Not only EHB will be active in vocational education, but shall do so … Continued
Salome Adam, co-president of actionuni, recognizes the positive intentions of ETH-president Joël Mesot in a recent interview with züriost. Joël Mesot publicly apologized “to those affected by the unprofessional conduct of their supervisors” and presents a set of measures to improve prevention, leadership and the handling of conflict situations. Read the full article here (German … Continued
Salome Adam, co-president of actionuni, was invited to comment in the Zürioberländer News on the recent cases of mobbing and plagiarism at EMPA, the independent materials, science and technology research institute of the ETH domain. Salome states that the complex dependencies of young researchers from their professors aid to cases of exploitation. At EMPA, two … Continued
Maximilien Stauber, secretary general of ACIDUL, University of Lausanne, got interviewed on the recently released position paper of actionuni. Maximilien claims that “It’s hard to get into a job if you know that potentially, in a year, or even three years, it will be over. These are unstable and often shifting positions. It is necessary … Continued
actionuni has given feedback on the new ETH legislation. Our main points are: criticism on the plan to increase the flexibility concerning contract duration for PostDocs and Assistant Professors. A minimum of four years in the first contract should be ensured. salary equality within ETH needs to be ensured by the ETH-Rat, also in case … Continued
Salome Adam, co-president of actionuni, participated in a discussion with Prof. Aguzzi from University of Zurich on the misuse of power and mobbing at universities. Some real cases are reported but also ways are discussed of how pressure in research can be mitigated without compromising scientific quality. Link to SRF (only German)
Today, actionuni der Schweizer Mittelbau publishes its position paper (pdf German / pdf French / pdf English) on the promotion of young researchers at Swiss higher education institutions. The position paper was drawn up jointly with all members and unanimously adopted at the last delegates’ meeting. Florian Lippke, former Co-President of actionuni and member of … Continued
Last week, an interesting symposium on the topic of supervising doctoral students was held by ETH in Zurich. It was discussed, how better training for supervisors can improve quality of supervision, how a contract between the PhD-student and the supervisor can help clarify expectations, how PhD-committees help balance power, which platforms can help strengthen peer-feedback … Continued